What's In A Name?
by rubycaspar
Summary: Tag to episode 501 Search and Rescue. SPOILERS. Rodney. Teyla. Some flowers. Rodney's POV. Team friendship. Slight Sheyla.


Disclaimer – I own none of the Stargate franchise.

So, it's yet another tag to Search and Rescue – and I'm sure it won't be the last. I _love _that episode! Obviously this story has spoilers for that episode.

_**What's In A Name?**_

I strode through the infirmary, a wide smile on my face. There wasn't anything that could stop me smiling today… not for too long anyway. Today had been a Good Day. I'd somehow survived having a building fall on top of me, we'd got Teyla back, I'd delivered her baby and got him back too, we'd rescued Teyla's baby's father as well, and we'd finally killed Michael.

A Good Day.

Teyla was sitting up in bed, smiling down at the baby in her arms. I still couldn't believe I'd actually _delivered _the baby. And that nothing had gone wrong. And I hadn't panicked at all… well, not much anyway. Kind of. Well whatever – everything had turned out fine.

Teyla looked up and saw me, and her smile widened. "Hey Teyla," I said cheerfully. I scanned the room and saw that it was empty except for a nurse stocking a cupboard in corner. "Where's Sheppard?"

"They have just taken him for surgery," Teyla replied. My smile faded a little as I remembered just how badly injured Sheppard still was, and I was a little upset that I hadn't got there in time to see him before he went under the knife. Still, there was point dwelling on it – he'd be okay.

"Right," I said, stopping next to Teyla's bed. "These are for you."

Teyla smiled again at the proffered vase. "They are beautiful, thank you," she said. There was a pause, and she raised her eyebrows and nodded to her bedside table. "Could you –"

"Oh right," I said, realising belatedly that she couldn't take the flowers from me. I placed the vase on the table next to her. I put my hands in my pockets and rocked on my heels, looking down at the baby in Teyla's arms. His eyes were half-closed and he looked about ready to close them the rest of the way too.

"How is he?" I asked.

"He is fine," said Teyla, smiling down at him again. She looked back up and gave me a grateful and affectionate smile. "Thanks to you."

I shrugged, feeling a little embarrassed by the look on her face. I couldn't help my grin though – I am only human after all, and everyone likes to be thanked. "Hey I just caught him," I said flippantly, making Teyla grin. "He's cute."

Teyla looked back at her son. "Yes, he is," she said. She reached up her left hand and smoothed the blanket around his head.

"He have a name yet?" I asked.

Teyla looked back up at me and bit her lip. "Yes," she said after a second. "I have decided to name him Torren John –"

I swayed on the spot. "After Sheppard?"

Teyla nodded. "Yes, and – "

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "You're naming him after _Sheppard_?"

There were footsteps and suddenly Ronon was standing next to me. "Hey."

I rounded on the Satedan, my eyes wide. "She's naming him after Sheppard!" I exclaimed, pointing wildly at Teyla.

Ronon's eyes widened and he looked past me at Teyla, unable to contain a smile. "Really, you've called him John?" He asked.

"_Torren_ John," Teyla corrected him softly. "After my father and, yes, after Colonel Sheppard."

Ronon grinned. "Very nice," he said.

I was speechless. Literally speechless. It was something that didn't happen to me very often, and I didn't like it when it did. But… _Sheppard_? She was calling the baby – the baby that _I'd _delivered – _John_? Not that I'd really been expecting her to call him Rodney – not seriously anyway – but why Sheppard? What the hell had _he_ done to deserve it? What about _me_? What about Ronon for that matter? Though, admittedly, Ronon hadn't been present at the birth so he had less of a claim…

It had been me, Rodney McKay, that had delivered the baby. I'd told Sheppard and Ronon how to destroy the hyperdrive. I'd been leading the way to execute a brilliant way to get them off the ship when we'd found Kanaan.

This was just so _unfair_.

"Ow!"

I looked furiously at Ronon, rubbing the sore spot on the back of my arm that he'd just pinched, and my teammate just glared back at me pointedly. I took the hint and turned back to Teyla, forcing out a very thin smile. "Yeah, er, that's nice."

Teyla didn't seem put out by my less-than-enthusiastic reaction – in fact she seemed amused. Wonderful – she found my pain funny. I might have known.

"Where is Sheppard, anyway?" Said Ronon now.

"They have just taken him into surgery," answered Teyla.

Ronon nodded. "Does he know yet?"

Teyla smiled. "Yes," she said.

"What'd he say?"

"He said he would be very honoured," said Teyla with another smile.

_Yeah I bet he did_. I scuffed the floor with my toe. Deep down I knew I was being childish at this point, but I didn't care. I just didn't _understand_.

"I can not believe you let him come after me in his condition," said Teyla after a moment.

My disbelief over the name was superseded for a moment, and I snorted, unable to help myself. "You think we had any say in it?" I said defensively. I could still remember the look Sheppard had given me in the puddlejumper, when I'd suggested he let me and Ronon look for Teyla alone. I'd understood immediately why Ronon had wanted _me_ to bring it up with him.

"He basically threatened Keller to get her to let him go," said Ronon in a disapproving tone.

I suddenly remembered the conversation I'd just had. "Sam just said something about a court martial," I said.

"_What_?!" Exclaimed Teyla, a stricken expression on her face. I glanced at Ronon and saw that he also looked completely panicked.

I back-pedalled, and fast. "No – she was joking – she said to tell him that it would have to wait," I explained. Teyla and Ronon relaxed, and I shrugged. "I'm just saying that he must have said something to her, too."

Teyla shook her head. "He is insane…"

Ronon shrugged. "He was desperate."

Teyla frowned, but before she could respond Chuck's voice sounded over the communications system. "_Dr McKay and Ronon to the control room immediately_."

I exchanged a bemused/worried look with Ronon before tapping my earpiece. Something told me the Good Day was over. "This is McKay – what's going on?" I demanded.

There was crackle, and then Chuck responded. "_It's Colonel Carter – she's dialled in from Earth and she needs to speak to you about something_."

I was ready to bet an entire year's wages that this wouldn't be good news. I frowned again and looked at Ronon, who'd been following on his own radio and looked just as happy as I felt.

"It's Carter," he explained to Teyla. "I'll come back later." He patted her knee and turned to walk away.

I gave Teyla a small smile. "Yeah, me too," I told her. Teyla nodded and returned the smile, and after a last glance at the b – er, at _Torren John_ – I followed Ronon.

_Torren John_. Honestly. What was going _on _with the universe?

"Nice name, huh?" Said Ronon quietly once I had caught him up. I could hear the smirk in his voice and glared at him.

"I just don't get _why_," I said after a moment.

Ronon shrugged. "Because it's Teyla. And it's John. They're them."

I snorted. "Well, thank you for that detailed analysis. Very helpful indeed."

Ronon stopped and I was forced to as well, since I'd walked right into Ronon's outstretched arm. Ronon turned to look back the way we'd come and I, rubbing my sore chest and glaring at the Satedan, followed suit.

We were in the next room to Teyla's by now but we could still see her clearly. She was smiling down at Torren, but a moment later she looked up, away from where myself and Ronon were standing, towards where the operating theatres were. Where Sheppard was. After a few seconds she looked back, but she was no longer smiling. She looked worried, and guilty. She sighed heavily and held her baby tighter to her. Her smile returned a little, but not like before.

I looked back at Ronon, my eyes wide, to find that he was looking right back at me, a maddeningly knowing expression on his face.

I looked back at Teyla and then back at Ronon. "What?" I asked.

Ronon just smirked and started to walk again. I followed him, casting one last look over my shoulder at Teyla as I did – she was looking towards the theatres again.

I knew what Ronon was saying – they were close, _really _close, closer than I was to Teyla and maybe even than Ronon was to Teyla. And I had a feeling that Ronon was implying more with his smug smiles, but I wasn't so sure about _that_. Still, I was perhaps a little closer to understanding the reasoning behind the name.

Still, it didn't mean I had to _like_ it.

_**The End**_


End file.
